Herdade do Peso Trinca Bolotas Alentejo Tinto 2020  £12.50

Herdade do Peso Trinca Bolotas Alentejo Tinto

Situated in the south of the Alentejo, in the commune of Vidígueira, the Herdade do Peso estate covers a total of 457 hectares. On the estate are 160 hectares of vineyard planted on gently rolling hills, a new eco-friendly winery, an on-site reservoir and remarkable olive groves which date back to Roman times.

Despite its southerly location, Vidígueira is one of the cooler Alentejo sub-regions and benefits from cool Atlantic air funnelled inland by a gap in the coastal hills. The limestone soils of the estate also lend elegance to the wines. The vineyards are planted predominantly to red varieties, with just eight hectares planted to white varieties. A lot of work has gone into mapping the 12 different soil types on the estate and each variety is matched to its ideal plot.

The talented Luís Cabral de Almeida, who has a post-graduate degree from Australia’s Charles Sturt University and worked for many years in the Finca Flichman winery in Mendoza, leads the winemaking team. Luís is very involved in the management of the Herdade do Peso vineyards and believes that “the oenologist’s primary role is to interpret nature”. The Herdade do Peso wines reflect the unique sense of place of Vidígueira, they are exuberant, ripe and generous, yet kept in balance by a refreshing acidity.

‘Trinca Bolotas’ means ‘acorn muncher’ and is a nod to the acorn-eating Iberian black pigs native to the Alentejo region. A blend of Touriga Nacional, Alicante Bouschet and Aragonez, 30% of the blend is aged in French oak for six months, lending a lovely spiciness to the ripe and juicy blackberry, black cherry and plum flavours. The Colheita Tinto undergoes 12 months of ageing in used French oak and blends Alicante Bouschet (a teinturier grape which really thrives in the Alentejo) with Syrah and Touriga Nacional. It has a lovely brooding black fruit intensity with peppery spiciness and velvety tannins.